Midnight earthquake kills 132 in Nepal, over 100 injured; strong tremors in North India

Nepal earthquake: Skymet vice president Mahesh Palawat said Delhi and Northwest India are safe as the aftershocks would be milder.

The 6.4 magnitude earthquake that jolted Nepal on Friday midnight killed at least 132 people and over 100 were left injured in the strong impact which could be felt as far as Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar apart from the Delhi-NCR region. The earthquake took place at 11.47pm and the epicentre was at Jajrakot's Lamidanda, 142 km from Kathmandu, 941 km from New Delhi.

Nepal's Jajrakot which was the epicentre of the midnight earthquake turned into a picture of rubble.

The death toll in Nepal could go up as the rescue work is going on. Prime Minister Pushpakamal Dahal 'Prachanda' headed towards the incident site with a medical team Saturday morning. Both Nepal Army and Nepal Police personnel have been mobilised to carry out rescue works, officials said. Communications were cut off at many places in Nepal.

Photos and videos of rubbles emerging from Nepal reveal the devastating impact of the major earthquake as houses collapsed trapping hundreds inside. Jajarkot and West Rukum districts have reported the maximum casualty while reports of deaths are still coming from other districts.

 

Situated at the meeting point of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates, Nepal is prone to earthquakes. In 2015, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake and its aftershocks killed around 9,000 people. Friday's midnight earthquake was the third in a month in Nepal. On October 2, two earthquakes of magnitude 6.2 and 4.6 hit Nepal. On October 22, a 6.1 magnitude struck Nepal with the epicentre ad Dhading, 55km from Kathmandu.

Nepal earthquake and its aftershocks

A 4.5 magnitude tremor hit at 12.08am, 4.2 at 12.29, 4.3 at 12.35 and 4.6 at 4.16 am, according to the National Earthquake Monitoring Centre. Fearing the aftershocks, many people spent the night in the open amid the debris as they continued to rescue trapped people. “Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal has expressed his deep sorrow over the loss of lives and property in the earthquake on Friday night and has mobilised all the three security bodies for the immediate rescue and relief,” reads a post from the prime minister’s office on X.

Indian PM Modi in his message for Nepal said India stands in solidarity with the people of Nepal and is ready to extend all possible assistance. "Our thoughts are with the bereaved families and we wish the injured a quick recovery," PM Modi tweeted.